In 2013, I boarded a plane to Cambodia to spend a year teaching at a school and orphanage. As the plane flew across the ocean, I had a sudden thought: I don’t even know what the Cambodian language sounds like! Somehow in all my preparations, I had never even thought to look up an online video to find out what I’d be hearing and learning for the next year or more. But over the course of the next year, I learned basic conversational Cambodian! If you’d like to find out how you can do the same, read on!

In this blog post, I’ll be covering:

My experience with learning a language through immersion
How to use the local culture to your advantage
How to listen in a way that helps you learn
Using a dedicated “language notebook” to keep you moving forward
One of the biggest things that can slow you down—and one of the best ways to speed things up
Do language learning apps help?

Me in 2013 with some of my students. (Fun fact: I met my now-husband on this specific trip!)

My experience with learning a language through immersion

When I arrived in Cambodia, a couple of old friends were there to greet me, along with new ones. Late at night I watched through the truck window as the very different sights of Siem Reap flew by.

The next morning, I discovered that I’d be teaching 6th grade subjects to students who were still very new to English. The textbooks I received for teaching them were 6th grade textbooks alright—but for native English speakers in Australia! There was no way that these kids would understand it. Desperate, I reached out to a friend I knew who had taught some ESL the previous year, and asked for her notes. She gave me some ideas, and her method of teaching became instrumental to my own teaching during that first year. But still, I knew I was in for one of the biggest challenges of my life!

Armed with a list of ten vocabulary words and a few activities, I walked into the classroom holding 37 students between the ages of 10 and 15. We got out a Khmer-English dictionary, and the (very chaotic but amazing) year began.

It was a day-by-day struggle, but at the end of the year, I had learned quite a bit of the Cambodian language (Khmer), and the students had learned over 400 new vocabulary words and how to use them in sentences. In addition, a few of the bravest kids had even started translating during our weekly chapel time with the other grades. I considered that a win! Today, many of those same kids are fluent in English and it’s so fun to remember our beginnings—of how they learned to become confident in English, and how I learned basic Khmer out of desperation!

Years later, I ended up marrying one of my best Cambodian friends, and we currently make our home in the United States. We have a goal of teaching our kids conversational Khmer. (Easier said than done!)

Following are some of the secrets I learned about learning basic conversation. This is obviously easiest in an immersion setting, but it can also happen in your home, with some good YouTube videos and a notebook.

How to use the local culture to your advantage

“Languaculture” is very important when it comes to learning a language. When you start learning a language, you will do yourself a disservice to only focus on grammar and vocabulary. If you think carefully about your primary language, you will realize that not only are the words important, but local and cultural information educate your thoughts. The general habits and behaviors of a society are a part of defining its language.

What does this mean for your language learning process? To gain the full experience, you will need to immerse yourself in the culture as much as possible. In an immersion setting, this is easiest, but if you’re at home, listen to local music, watch local movies, watch the local news. Participate in the culture as much as possible so that you can really start getting a feel for it—and you’ll find your language will start becoming educated by this culture as well.

How to listen in a way that helps you learn

Listen, listen, listen. Even if you only know a couple of words. This is easier said than done, but the more words you learn, you’ll find that you enjoy listening for the words you do know. In an immersion setting, you would listen in a store/market, around a table with locals, or in a church/temple/synagogue/mosque, and you would learn different vocabulary in each setting. Similarly, if you can search out some YouTube videos of people simply talking in various contexts, you’ll have some good listening content. Search for “[language] church”, “[language] conversation”, “[language] business”, “[language] news”, etc. and it should help you find some good listening content.

Rocket Languages is an awesome way to begin this learning process. Unlike many other language learning apps, they focus on listening and speaking, and even have downloadable audio tracks for each language that you can use to start listening to your target language. You can start with a free trial, with no credit card required! Click here to sign up today!

Using a dedicated “language notebook” to keep you moving forward

As you listen, make mental note of the words you’re learning—and start to create a dictionary of words you know, what they mean, and how to pronounce them. How do you learn words? Simply through figuring out context, and sometimes using a multi-language dictionary. (You can often find apps for these, going both ways (i.e. English to Khmer, or Khmer to English.)

Grab an empty notebook and start with the first 1-3 words you’ve learned. It won’t be much at the beginning, but I promise you, it will grow.

If you have friends or contacts who speak the language, even better—you can write down words you’re not sure on, and ask for help to grow your dictionary.

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦 on Unsplash

One of the biggest things that can slow you down—and one of the best ways to speed things up

The way to speed things up the fastest is simply to just PRACTICE. Get out there and talk. Listen, and then speak the words a few times in order to actually figure out the right way to say it. My husband is so good at this, which is probably the reason he knows 4 different languages! I tend to be more timid and perfectionistic, so I don’t learn as fast.

It will slow you down so much to be a perfectionist. If you feel like you have to understand it all before you speak, it will take forever for you to get anywhere. Don’t focus on grammar so much as figuring out how people actually say things. Yes, the grammar is important, but actually getting to a conversational level doesn’t require it!

One way to get practicing is by using an app like Rocket Languages. Their goal is to get you speaking, and that’s what you need! Sign up today to get a free trial—and start speaking a new language today!

Do language learning apps/softwares help?

I know this is a debated topic—but I will say, yes, absolutely. For me in Cambodia, there was no such thing as an app or software, because Khmer is generally a lesser-known language. Fast forward 10 years to today, and there are at least a few digital tools available to assist in learning Khmer (you can now use the translation camera in the Google Translate app, how exciting!), and they are so helpful.

How should you use an app or software? Honestly, some of the arguments against using apps are true: If you use it to just learn a little bit of vocabulary and not much speaking or listening to real life conversation, it’s likely not going to do you much good. But if you are learning a language with a new alphabet that is unfamiliar to you, or if you’re able to listen and speak within that app, then it’s going to be a good fit. And besides, you can always start with an app to learn the basics and then move on to listening!

Are you learning or planning to learn Latin American Spanish, French, Italian, German, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, Russian, Egyptian Arabic, Korean, Brazilian Portuguese, or even American Sign Language? Sign up for FREE with Rocket Languages today for a trial—no credit card needed! You can check it out and see how well the Rocket Languages system works for you.

Rocket Languages not only teaches you a language—they also teach you the culture so you can really connect with the language like a local. Best of all, you can learn on your own time frame. You get lifetime access to the language course you choose! I know you’ll be happy with your progress, and in no time at all you’ll be speaking a new language with ease.

Happy language learning!

5 Tips to Learn Basic Conversation in Any Language